The Price
by iwantsprezzatura
Summary: "I never forget my deals, you taught me that. But I want you to be... so happy. Which is why I'm not going to collect." - After failing to rescue Henry and Bae, Mr Gold remembers someone from his past who might just be able to help them. - Season 3 AU - RumplexOC - please read
1. Prologue

**Hi there.  
Word of warning: when I wrote this (for NaNo) I had seen everything up to 3x04 (I guess? It was Nasty Habits), so it goes AU after that and pretty much stays there.  
This is only the prologue and the first real, long chapter will be up tomorrow.**

**I apologize for any linguistic mistakes, seen as I'm not a native English speaker. Please bear with me :)  
**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon A Time, any of the characters, places or storylines that you recognize. **

* * *

**PROLOGUE**

* * *

"Gold? Is that you?"

He stepped into the clearing, still a little shaken by the freezing spell he had been forced to endure earlier. Then again, that spell most certainly was not what troubled him most. His son's lack of faith in him had put them in an even weaker position; Henry was in Pan's hands again.

He looked up to find that the group had gathered around him and they were all still alive and well. For the most part, that was almost relieving; he could, of course, have gone without Hook.

"Yes, it is me."

Emma looked him up and down in a hurry. "Are you all right? Did you get to Henry?"

"Do I look like I did?"

"Well, no," she admitted. "Where were you all this time, we would have needed you-"

"I'm inclined to believe that, dearie, but I came, after all, very close to succeeding."

"So, what? You know where he is?"

He sighed and set down on a stump, attempting to grant his bad leg some rest. "I've seen him. And Bae-"

"Neal is here?" Emma exclaimed.

"He fell through the portal," Regina said calmly. "He died."

"No, no, he is very much alive. I'm afraid I lost him, though."

"You found your son that you believed to be dead – and then you lost him," Regina sneered. "Why, aren't you our saviour?"

He glared at her, yet she seemed unfazed. Emma sighed heavily and sank onto a rather large stone.

"What are we gonna do now? If even you can't stop Pan-"

"There might be someone," he said slowly. He was not sure how to go about this – he was not at all certain of the success of such a plan. On his way here, he had given it a great deal of thought and still, the plan relied too much on uncertainties.

"You want to bring someone else into this?"

He desperately wanted to ignore the pirate, but he did raise a significant question. "Yes. See, the problem is that Pan controls Neverland's magic – it's why, even if we do get Henry – which is more or less impossible – we don't get to flee."

He did notice the awfully suspicious glance shared between the pirate and the prince and he briefly wondered what they were up to before turning his attention to the more urgent matters at hand.

"Who could possibly do something about it?" Regina asked, stepping closer again. "If even you can't-"

"It's why I used the word 'might'. Even though I'm certain that someone could, I'm not sure if that someone will."

"Who?" It was Snow White who had finally stepped forward. "Who do you want to bring?"

* * *

"Are you sure this will work?" Emma asked sceptically as she brought another arm full of firewood.

"Not at all," he answered. "But I think I might just be able to reach out to her. Magic lands don't lie that far apart."

"This is madness," Regina said decidedly, she, too, bringing some wood. "If it was so easy-"

"Yes, yes, yes. I'm aware of possible limitations."

"If Pan controls the magic here," the prince asked. "How does yours even work?"

"Magic is a rather strange thing," he informed shortly. "One can't even begin to understand it." Yes, he thought. That was definitely true.

"Well then," Regina said, lighting the fire with a swift motion of her hand. "Do it, Gold."


	2. Neverland

**Chapter 1, as promised, and thanks to everyone who read and to the person that alerted this story.**

* * *

**Neverland**

* * *

I awoke to a rather strange feeling. As if something from another world and another time had touched me. I stared up at the ceiling, wonderfully crafted and covered in the painting of a spring meadow.  
I sighed heavily. Another dream about him? And yet, it had seemed so real this time. Strangely, too, I felt that he had not been in _his_ land. He always was in my dreams.

Restless, I decided to get up already. None of the other priestesses would be up yet, but that was of little importance to me. I couldn't very well remain lying in bed after such a dream.  
I got to my feet and almost stumbled. The feeling had returned. Screaming in the back of my head and yet so far away that I could not make out what was being said; the only thing I knew for sure was that it was him.

Was his presence now even hounding me in my waking hours?

Admittedly, the dreams seemed to have increased over the last few months. For the past twenty years, at least, I had believed myself completely detached from him. Suddenly, though, the dreams had started up. I had relived scenes from the past, over and over again as if to mock me for the confidence I had in myself.

Carefully, I straightened up again and walked to the window. It was still dark outside, naturally, as it was still months until Beltane would be celebrated. I went to light a candle. As the light erupted, I went dizzy again.

A fire burning high between trees and his voice, his voice calling.

I took a deep breath, trying to pull myself back into reality. It couldn't be. It was simply not possible. If he was still alive – and that, in itself, could not be proven – he did not have any magic. Even if he had wanted to contact me, and why would he, he could not have. He had gone to a land without magic as it had been his goal all along. He could not be calling for me.

The candle had dropped to the floor and expired. I bent down to pick it up.

"Milady?"

I turned my head slightly as I rose up again. "Good morning, Elaine," I greeted carefully. "I'm sorry if I woke you, I seem to be rather clumsy today."

"Well, it is very early," the girl said good-naturedly. "May I?"

She took the candle from me and proceeded to light it on the candle she, herself, had brought.  
"What awoke you so early, milady?"

I thought about telling her of the weird feeling, but I felt that this was not to be shared with the girl. This was not to be shared with anyone. None of them could even come close to understanding what it felt like to be touched by another one's magic.

"Just a bad dream."

"I'm sorry," she offered at once.

I nodded slightly, still distracted by the incessant feeling. Again, I grasped the back of a stool close by to keep myself steady. The fire again. _A land were you never... were you never... land..._

"Milady?" Elaine had hurried to join me. "Are you all right?"

"Quite," I muttered. "Just feel a little dizzy."

"Maybe you should lie down again-"

"No," I said matter-of-factly. "I will do anything but that."

I still found it impossible to believe that it would be him calling for me – but maybe I had just mistaken another's presence for his. A part of me screamed that it was unlikely, impossible even and yet the more rational part of me considered this possibility.

"I'm going to have to meditate," I informed Elaine swiftly. "And I'll need to be alone."

"Milady, are you sure that-"

"I'm absolutely sure," I said. "Now please, Elaine. Leave."

The uncertainty radiated of the girl, but she did as she was told anyway. I watched as she left hurriedly and pulled the large doors shut behind her.  
I sank to the floor and as soon as I closed my eyes, the images were coming back.

Not only the fire now, but a clearing. Several people were surrounding that fire but I could not make out a single face. The clearing was surrounded by trees that seemed to be off the purest green. And then, there were the words again. _A land were you never... were you never..._ I concentrated hard, trying to pick up the rest of the phrase. _A land were you never... land were you never grow old._

I sighed heavily, opening my eyes again and abandoning the connection. Neverland.

Now, it seemed clear to me that this wasn't about _him_ at all; it was probably just Peter Pan messing around with his magic again. The boy seemed to think that he could do as he pleased; well, the line was crossed when he bothered me with his strange doings.

"Elaine!"

The doors opened at once and girl rushed in, clearly having waited behind that door as to be quick should she be needed. She was a sweet enough girl, I figured, but the obedience was driving me nuts.

"I need clothes for wandering," I ordered. "Good, stable things, things that can get a little messy."

"Where are you going, milady?"

"I'm going to Neverland."

* * *

"She heard it."

"Are you kidding me?" Regina asked loudly. "Nothing happened."

"Well, magic isn't always pompous," he said, smirking slightly.

He had felt her presence very clearly just half a minute ago. If nothing else, then curiosity would drive her here.

"I hoped we'd at least see some kind of response," Emma stated.

"You still lack faith," he said, extinguishing the flame easily.

"Gold!" Charming exclaimed. "Are you sure?"

"But of course," he said easily. "Once she's in this world, she'll find us."

"How will she even get here?" Regina said, obviously fuming. "Does she have a portal or-"

"Oh, she doesn't need one," he said merrily.

"And how will she find us here?" Hook demanded. "Neverland's not a small place-"

"She will find us," he snapped at the pirate. "You'll see."

* * *

"Stop!"

Eyebrows rising to indefinite heights, I stopped in my tracks as four boys jumped out of the bushes and spread to a semi-circle before me.

"You're not allowed here!"

"Felix, is that you?" I asked. "I've come to speak to Pan."

"He's not seeing anyone right now."

"Guess what, I don't care."

I stepped forward and they lowered their lances toward me. "You're being ridiculous," I told him. "Step aside, or I'll make you."

"Now, now, that won't be necessary."

I turned slowly to come face to face with the knowing smirk on Peter Pan's face. "Just the man I've been searching for."

"Not a man," he said. "Never going to be."

"Shame," I said.

He still smirked as he stepped past me to order his boys. "Get back to the camp. Make sure no one leaves, no one enters. We had enough last night."

"I can imagine," I muttered.

He turned to frown at me. "What are you doing here?"

"Whatever you've been cooking up, I want you to stop it. Your magic, it's calling out to me, it's keeping me from sleeping."

"Now, but I haven't done anything."

"Don't lie, dearie. I don't like it."

"But I'm not lying," he said, smiling broadly. Somehow, no matter how merry he seemed, it never appeared to be genuine. "I've done nothing out of the ordinary – where magic is concerned, at least. And that is, after all, the only thing that concerns you."

I searched his face, trying to make out what he was hiding. "I felt someone from Neverland reaching out to me. It could have only been you."

"But we have guests!" Pan exclaimed happily.

I gritted my teeth. Guests were what Pan said if he meant prisoners. For this island was a prison. No one could leave if they had not been granted special permission by Pan himself – and who would he grant it to? Of course, there was one obvious exception to the rule

"Guests?" I replied. "Where might I find them?"

"Oh, I wouldn't know. Somewhere on the island. I'm sure you can help yourself."

"Always the gentleman," I bit back.

His smirk broadened and I rolled my eyes.

"I'm warning you, Pan," I called over my shoulder as I made to leave. "No funny business."

I got no response.

* * *

"This is senseless," Regina stated bitterly. "Why would we be moving when we have-"

"Because we haven't called her to a specific place," he explained calmly. "It's not like I can summon her."

"Well that would have been fortunate," Emma dead-panned as she caught up to him. "Why again are we moving away from the shore?"

"She is likely to go see Pan first if she didn't figure out who was calling for her. I want to be closer by. Speed things up."

"And here I thought you were a man not to be mistaken with any other," Regina sneered.

"Please do stop snapping at each other," Snow White said. "It doesn't help us."

"Hold on!" David called from the far back and he turned to see what caused the delay. "There's someone in the bushes!"

At once, swords, arrows and magic were drawn. Indeed, there was a rustling in the bushes, a silent muttering and then, she emerged.

She froze as she found Charming's sword being pointed at her face. "What the-?"

Her eyes had flickered along the path and landed on him, sticking to him as if glued. With a mere wave of her hand, she brushed the sword away and took a few steps in his direction. She stood, eyeing him from head to toe as if not quite believing her eyes.

"Rumpelstiltskin?"

* * *

**Please do feel free to share your opinion with me in a review. It would be greatly appreciated :) **


	3. The Deal

**Thanks to everyone who read, fav'd, alerted and most of all to the people who reviewed. It's greatly appreciated :)  
****Flashbacks are, for better separation, in _italics_.**

* * *

**The Deal**

* * *

"_It's no use!" I exclaimed. "All I'll do is blow the whole thing up."  
_

_"You need to concentrate," the priestess scolded. "You can do it."  
_

_Frustrated, I stared at the pile of wood in front of me. Lighting it up as such would not be a problem. The problem was that with it, I'd probably burn the whole field down. The experiences of the past week had me on my toes around fire._

"_Again, please, Morgaine."_

_I closed my eyes, trying to bundle the energy, trying to push it into form and direction, letting it do exactly what I wanted-_

_But I felt it slip away from me, the little control I had over my magic dissolving. Scared, I broke it off._

"_It doesn't work, I can't control it."  
_

_"Oh, but of course you can, you just have to-"  
_

_"I don't have to do anything," I snapped. "You're not helping!"_

_She looked taken aback at my sudden outburst and I turned away so I would not have to watch her hurt expression. It was just too much. Too much power. None of them would ever understand. What was I supposed to do? Beltane was just two months away and, having turned sixteen, I was supposed to light the fires. But how could I? I was more of a risk than a blessing. _

"_Milady, please," the older priestess started. "If you were to focus-"_

"_And how?" I asked furiously, whirling around to her again. "All you keep doing is telling me to focus, but how? How am I supposed to control this? You have done nothing to help me with it!"_

"_Please, I have taught a lot of girls like yourself how to-"  
_

_"But you have never taught the Lady, have you?" I demanded. "It looks like I need to find another teacher."_

* * *

"Rumpelstiltskin?" I asked, taking another step towards him. "Is that really you?"

"But of course I am, dearie."

I gave short, incredulous laugh and then rushed forward to hug him. He stumbled a little and I drew back, still smiling. "Sorry, I forgot about the leg – how are you here?"

"Won't you introduce us, crocodile?"

I turned slightly to look at the man who had spoken. Messy dark hair was falling into his eyes and he smirked as he saw me taking in the hook he wore instead of a hand.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"Captain Hook," he said, reaching out take my hand, bending slightly forward. With no more than a raised eyebrow my magic sent him stumbling backwards.

"Don't touch me."

I had heard stories about that man, the worst from Rumple himself.

"Not a fan of pirates, are you, woman?"

"Oh, I love pirates. But I don't see one. All I see is an arrogant fool who lacks a hand."

Hook glared and I turned back to Rumple, who was smirking at the pirate.

"I think he's right, though. Introductions are in order."

"Yes, yes, they are. So, I guess you've heard of Snow White and Prince Charming?" He was pointing at a man and a woman standing close by, watching me warily.

"Of course I have. And I know you," I said, turning to the dark haired woman. "You are the Evil Queen."

"I do prefer Regina," she bit back sourly.

"My apologies," I said. "There's one left, then."

"I'm Emma," the woman said and I noted how here hand still hovered over the pommel of her sword.

"The Emma?" I asked, looking around to Rumple.

"The Emma," he said.

"You know me?" she asked, clearly confused.

"Well he was obsessed with you once he knew your name. Wouldn't stop scribbling it."

"He was in a cell," Snow White exclaimed. "He was not supposed to see anyone."

"Oh, I'm sorry, love. You thought that would stop him?"

"Who are you?" she asked, stepping forward.

"I'm Morgaine. Lady of the Lake. High Priestess of Avalon. Keeper of all magic," I added. "You're cute little spell to keep him in, couldn't keep me away."

"You're kidding." Regina was staring accusingly at Rumple. "You brought the Lady of the Lake – you told us she was just a powerful sorceress! You told us-"

"I told you she was powerful and I didn't lie, did I?" he asked, nodding to me. "It's good you came. We need your help."

* * *

_Help. I thought desperately as I walked the woods. I need help. _

_In my anger at the elders who refused to resign me another teacher, I had somehow managed to transport myself away. It appeared that I was able to press my magic into an acceptable form when I was angry. Since then, though, my anger had wound down considerably and I was stuck. How was I going to get back now? It wasn't just a long journey – I had wound up in a different world all together. Without magic, I would never be able to return._

"_My, my, what do we have here?"  
_

_I whirled around to see who the voice belonged to. I found it to be a rather strange man leaning against a tree. His skin had a peculiar texture and an even stranger colour, hovering somewhere between gold and green. What struck me most, though, were his eyes. Of a colour that I couldn't quite place, his pupils didn't seem to dilate. _

"_Who are you?" I asked, trying to sound braver than I felt. _

_He bowed deep, almost as if to mock me. "Rumpelstiltskin."  
_

_"Rumpel- no," I said, taking a step back. "You are the Dark One."  
_

_He straightened up, his strange eyes sparkling with amusement. "My reputation precedes me. Excellent."  
_

_I suppressed a shiver. Most of Viviane's scrolls dealt with her dislike for the Dark One. She had believed him to cause an unbalance and had tried repeatedly to take his magic. But magic didn't just evaporate and she had never been able to predict where it would go until she finally accepted that it was an impossible task. That, of course, did not make the Dark One any less dangerous. _

"_This is anything but excellent," I told him coldly. "If you'll excuse me-"  
_

_I turned around, hoping that he would just let me leave me. I had no such luck. Out of the blue, he appeared again in front of me. _

"_How rude," he said. "Won't you tell me your name?"_

_I considered him and finally relented. "It's Morgaine."  
_

_"Morgaine – as in the Lady of the Lake?"  
_

_I squared my shoulders as he walked around me. "Yes, indeed."  
_

_He giggled madly. "Why would the Lady of the Lake need _my_ help?"  
_

_"I don't need your help," I snapped at him._

"_Oh, but you called for it, dearie," he said happily. "Why else would I be here?"_

"_Are you done wasting my time?" I asked coldly. "I'd like to leave."  
_

_"Ah, but that's it, isn't it?" he said, coming to a halt in front of me again. "You came here but you don't know how to get back. Quite the predicament." His eyes shone even brighter as he looked me up and down amusedly. "You can't use your magic," he stated. "Oh, this is gold."  
_

_"Great. Now that we talked about my uselessness, can we please part ways?"  
_

_"And then, how do you get back?" he asked._

_I frowned at him. "Are you offering your help?"  
_

_"I'm offering you a deal."_

* * *

We were seated on the edge of a small spring, as the group filled up their water bottles.

"So, let me get this straight," I said slowly. "Peter Pan kidnapped your grandson, who just so happens to be the son of the Saviour and the stepson of the Evil Queen."

"I wish I would have gotten it right so fast."

I frowned at him. "You must have known. Things like this don't just happen to you."

"Well," he said slowly. "I didn't have any magic, remember? Meaning, I also had no sight."

I sighed heavily. "Listen, I can't just get him out of there for you."

"Why not?" he asked desperately. "Whatever he plans to do to Henry certainly isn't something good."

"You never were up to any good either, love. Doesn't mean I can stop you. Pan's not doing anything to endanger the balance. I have no right to interfere."

"So," Emma said, sitting on a rock next to us. "What does that mean – the balance?"

"We believe," I said slowly. "That there is a balance. Nature produces it. For every power, there is a weakness; for everything evil, there is something good. Now, it can happen that there is an unbalance that nature itself can't solve. It would be my task to ensure that balance is established again."

"Very nicely recited," Rumple said dryly. "You never cared about balance when it came to me."

"I'm telling you, I've told you a thousand times, the dagger is the weakness to your power, balance is perfectly save."

"Yes, but I own the dagger."

"Well that is just tough luck." I shot him a look and turned to Emma again. "The point is, I can't just take away somebody's magic because he's doing something bad. That's just life."

"Please," Snow White and her prince joined us. "You have to help us. There is no other way."

"None of us has enough magic to get Henry, or even escape. Not even him," Regina spat.

"You are our last hope," Snow White said pleadingly.

I sighed heavily, looking between them and finally turned to Rumple again. "Well. Then maybe we should make a deal."

* * *

"_A deal?" I asked warily. "What kind of deal?"_

"_Well, I would teach you how to control your magic so that you can get back."  
_

_I watched him closely as I asked, "Can you get me back by Beltane?"  
_

_"That only depends on you, dearie."  
_

_I bit my lip. I had to find a way back and I had to find it soon. The Dark One was my best bet. Also, I had been searching for a new teacher anyway – obviously, he had mastered his magic quite well. Why not take what was so freely offered?  
_

_"And what would be your price?" I inquired. _

_He cackled again, stepping a bit closer. "Just a small favour, really."_

_I fought the urge to roll my eyes at him. "Name your price, Rumpelstiltskin."_

"_I want you to _never_ even attempt to take my magic away. I don't want you to ever work against me."  
_

_I narrowed my eyes at him. "They told me you were dangerous."  
_

_"Ah, but, dearie, I'm your only option."  
_

_I hesitated. Indeed, Viviane's scrolls had not spoken in favour of the Dark One. Yet here I was, trapped in his world, and he was completely right. "Fine," I said. "I won't take your magic away."  
_

_He giggled again in delight and extended his hand to me. "Deal."_

* * *

**Maybe you need a bit more info... Morgaine is inspired - very obviously - by Marion Zimmer Bradley's rendition of the Arthurian legend. She wrote a book called "The Mists of Avalon", which is very famous, so you may have heard of it. It's a great book and I can only recommend it. Anyway, it follows Morgan Le Faye, who eventually becomes Lady of The Lake. **

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed and please review :)**


	4. The Heart of the Truest Believer

**Guys, please. Silence is silver, reviews are golden. I mean, I can see people reading and alerting and fav'ing, (thank you!), so - maybe a review or two might be really nice :)  
****I don't want to complain too much. Enjoy the next chapter.**

* * *

**The Heart of the Truest Believer**

* * *

"You again," Felix stated as he stepped in my way. "I told you, Peter doesn't want you near the camp."

"Great," I said, smiling. "'Cause I was hoping to speak to you."

The boys' eyes narrowed suspiciously at me. "Why would you want to speak to me?"

"Ah," I said good-naturedly, "See, your guests, they've told me quite a funny story. That you got a new boy in your group."

"Yes," he said cautiously. "What about him?"

"Well, he doesn't appear to be very lost," I stated. "He's got his whole family searching for him."

"Doesn't mean he doesn't feel lost," Felix said defiantly.

"Please," I said, stepping closer. "Don't play dumb with me, love. Pan took him, specifically him. Tell me why."

"I don't need to tell you anything," he said, raising his chin. "Peter wouldn't want me to."

"Wouldn't he?" I mused. "Who're you standing guard over?"

"Won't tell you," Felix said and I saw the muscles on his jaw tightening.

"Come on, Felix," I coaxed. "Why this defiance? I'm not working against you."

"Yes, you are," he said quickly. "Peter warned us about you."

"See, you've got two options, now," I told him. "One, we have a talk, a real one, including the trade of information, or, two, I'll just plant you in the ground and go have a look myself."

He didn't answer and I sighed heavily. With a wave of my hand, I had him planted in the ground to the neck.

"Your fault, dearie," I told him. "And don't even bother to scream or I'll take your voice as well."

With that, I walked past him.

"Wait – wait, I'll tell you about the boy."

Smiling, I stopped and turned around again. Crouching in front of him, I said, "Talk."

* * *

"Can we really trust her, Gold?"

Emma was watching him closely as he renewed the paint on his face. "I don't know if you can."

"Do you trust her?"

"With my life."

"Well," Charming interfered, walking up to the two. "This isn't about your life. It's about Henry's."

"Listen, she and I made a deal. No one breaks deals with me, least of all her."

"What did you promise her, Gold?" Emma demanded.

"My business."

"It's not your business," she told him sternly. "We are all in this together. We need to work together."

He huffed and made to stand.

"What did you promise?" Emma asked again.

"Just a favour."

"A specific one?"

"No."

He watched from the corner of his eyes as Emma and her father exchanged a look. The prince shook his head slightly. Very well then. He did not care if they believed him or not. He had no use for their trust in him. He had to admit that he was a little worried, though. He had taught her after all and she would know how to make the most of a deal.

But then, all that mattered very little. The only thing that mattered was Henry. For getting him back, he was willing to pay any price. Maybe, he thought bitterly, he would already be dead before she could even demand her price. Staring into the darkness of the woods, he hoped that she would be back soon.

* * *

"He said magic's been dying. He said the boy would be the solution," Felix said hurriedly and I frowned at him.

"And why would the boy be able to do that?"

"Said he's the descendant of the greatest light and the greatest dark magic."

I huffed in annoyance. The story lacked significantly in credibility. The idea that magic was dying was just ridiculous. Then again, could it be that Neverland's magic was fading? Or was it just Pan's magic that was? After all, most of Neverland's wonders depended solely on him.

"You're lying," I stated, standing up and hoping to suggest that I would leave him planted in the ground.

"No, no, I'm telling the truth, I swear!"

"Love, please, you're being ridiculous. If magic was dying, don't you think _I_ would know?"

He swallowed hard, doubt swirling in his eyes. The boy must have known that I had a point. After all, I was said to be pure magic; how would I not know if my very essence was fading?

"I can only tell you what Peter told me. And I'm telling the truth, I swear-"

"But you left something out, didn't you?" I said, crouching in front of him again. "How would the boy bring magic back, huh? He would just dream it and it appear as things do in Neverland? We both know that wouldn't work. And Pan knows it as well."

"I really-"

"You know the drill," I said, standing up to stretch again. "Tell me the truth, love."

I watched as Felix hesitated and finally admitted, "I may have heard something."

"I'm all ears," I said merrily.

"Pan told the boy that he's got the Heart of the Truest Believer."

I froze, staring at him. "You're joking."

"Not in the mood," he reminded me coldly.

"You are sure?" I asked. "The Heart of the Truest Believer?"

"If I say so! I told you everything," he added. "Let me go."

"You said that before," I reminded him lazily.

"Please. That's really all I know."

I considered him for a moment and then waved my hand to free him. He gasped and frantically dusted of his clothes.

"Now, love, I'm sure you understand. I can't have you running to Pan. He mustn't know I've been asking questions."

"What-?"

"_Forget_," I whispered.

His face went blank before he started blinking rapidly. "What the hell is going on?"

"I wouldn't know. You seem to have been dreaming for a minute there, dearie."

His eyes focused on me and his expression went stern. "I told you," he said. "Peter doesn't want you near the camp."

"My apologies," I said, smiling at him brightly. "I'll be on my way then."

* * *

I opened my eyes to the same spring that I had left them on earlier that day. At once, both Emma and Regina hurried towards me.

"Have you seen Henry?"

"Is he well?"

"What's Pan up to-?"

"I haven't seen him," I said curtly, brushing past them. "Rumple? We need to have a talk."

He stepped out of the woods at the other end of the clearing, brows furrowed in worry. "What's happened?"

"Let's walk," I said swiftly, and he followed me on the heel as I headed for the trees.

"What's going-?"

"I don't want them to hear us just now," I informed him shortly and stopped. Taking a deep breath, I drew a sound-proof bubble around us. "I talked to Felix. He told me Pan said that magic was dying."

He looked a little startled at this news. "How can magic die?"

"It can't, it's complete nonsense," I said. "But it appears that is what he told his boys. Luckily, Felix overheard something else."

"And what would that be?"

"Well-"

"Morgaine, speak up."

I glared at him. "He said Henry has the Heart of the Truest Believer. Rumple, Pan wants to become pure magic."

He stared at me. "No. No, he wouldn't..."

"Yes," I said. "He would."

"But that means – if Pan were to do that ritual-"

I nodded gravely. "Henry would die."

* * *

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	5. No Doubt

**So, uh... people are still alerting and fav'ing (thank you!), but no one's reviewing. And it's sad. Honestly, I'd like it very much if you reviewed. I mean, I'm not going to threaten to not update or anything, that would just be ridiculous. But a comment or two would make me very, very happy.  
****That said, please enjoy the next chapter :)**

* * *

**No Doubt**

* * *

"_Ugh!" I groaned. "It still doesn't work."  
_

_"You're not focusing, dearie."  
_

_I wanted to scream or punch him in the face. Maybe both. Instead, I settled with just glaring at him. "You're not helping. This is a disaster. Had I wanted people to tell me to focus, I would have just stayed at home."  
_

_"But you didn't," he snapped. _

"_Well, no. You're supposed to teach me, why don't I learn anything, huh?"  
_

_"How are you supposed to learn if you can't even light a candle?"  
_

_"But that's just my problem!" I spat at him. Frustrated, I brushed past him to leave the library._

"_How did you get here?"  
_

_I whirled around at the top of the stairs. "I told you."  
_

_Impatiently, he waved his hand. "Tell me again."  
_

_"I had a fight with the Elders," I summed up. "I was angry, I wanted to leave – and I was gone. Turned up again in the Enchanted Forest."_

"_Ah," he said, walking towards me. "So you did control it then."  
_

_I stared at him and finally said, "Yes. Obviously."  
_

_"Good. I want you to remember that anger and then light that candle."_

_I sighed in frustration and turned to the candle again. _Light_, I thought, _light. Light up!

"_It can't do it."  
_

_"Well then," Rumpelstiltskin said coldly. "You're just wasting my time. You can let yourself out."  
_

_My anger welled up inside me violently. "Oh no!" I called after him as he walked to the stairs. "We had a deal!"  
_

_He turned very slowly, a smug smile playing on his lips. "And I intend to honour it."  
_

_In the circular room, every single candle had lightened up._

* * *

Rumple was shaking his head. "We can't let him kill Henry."

"And we won't," I said. "I can't let him become purely magical."

"How does he know of the ritual anyway?"

I shrugged. "I have no idea. It's one of Avalon's most well-guarded secrets. I only ever told you about it. So unless you go shouting things like that from the rooftops, I honestly have no idea how he would know."

He started pacing up and down in front of me. "So... what are we going to do know?"

"I suggest the following," I said slowly. "We need to gain time, so I'll tell Pan I know. Stall him."

"He will never blow it off."

"No, of course not. But he'll go and try to find a way around me, which gives us time to work out an actual plan."

"I don't see why you can't just get Henry out of there-"

"And if I would, how would you all leave? I can jump from here to Avalon, but I can't take any of you with me. Let alone a whole pirate ship."

"We can leave Hook," he said swiftly.

"Well you could. But I doubt the Saviour and her parents would be in favour of that."

He snorted, but he did not disagree.

"Seriously, Rumple. We need to get Pan to let you leave or release his hold on Neverland."

He nodded gravely, his gaze travelling back the path to where the rest of the group was waiting.

"Fine," he said slowly. "I'll think of something."

I nodded as well, watching him closely as he kept staring into nothingness.

"Hey," I said, reaching out to touch his cheek. "I know you worry about the boy, but we'll find a way. I promise."

He met my eyes and I sighed a little. It was strange, seeing him like this. Was this what he had looked like before becoming the Dark One? At the very least, I could get used to the warm brown colour his eyes now held.

"After all," he said. "We made a deal. And no one breaks deals with me."

"Wouldn't dream of it, love."

* * *

_I grinned brightly, turning around and around in the rain. I couldn't believe that it was so _easy_._

"_What are you doing there, dearie?"  
_

_I looked up to find him leaning out of a window several stores up the castle. "I don't even get wet!" I called up to him. _

_He appeared right in front of me, taking me in as I stood in the pouring rain. "Not impressed."  
_

_Contrary to his statement, he looked incredibly pleased with himself. _

"_Well, I am," I said, still smiling. "A month ago, I couldn't even dream about this."  
_

_"Well, you can leave soon, then," he said._

_The smile drained from my face as suddenly, the raindrops did hit me again. "So eager to see me go?"_

"_See, I don't get to spin with you occupying every spare time I have. There's always noise. It's keeping me from thinking."_

_I shot him an incredulous look. He could not be serious. "I don't know why you're spinning anyways. It's not like you need the gold."  
_

_"Aren't you listening?" he snapped. "I think. Make plans."  
_

_"I'm so sorry to stop you from scheming," I bit back. "Maybe I should leave right now."  
_

_"Do it, then."  
_

_"Fine."  
_

_"Fine."_

* * *

The first thing I noted was the rich smell of earth that occurred after rain. I opened my eyes to find that the fields of Avalon had indeed been graced by water.

I took a deep breath and hurried forwards, towards the abbey.

"Morgaine!"

An elder woman was hurrying towards me and I was once again struck by the time that had passed. I remembered her growing up with me and now, so many years later, she was old while I remained young...

"Adriane," I said hurriedly. "I need to talk to the Elders now. We have a problem on our hands."

* * *

"We can't possibly let you take that scroll with you."

I raised an eyebrow at Adriane who was eyeing me sternly. From the corner of my eye, I saw several of the Elders nodding their agreement.

"I don't see how you would stop me," I told her matter-of-factly.

"The Elder's Council-"

"Is meant to advise the Lady of the Lake, not to disable her work. We are not discussing facts, such as me taking the scroll along. I can't possibly learn it by heart right now, I'll need to go over it again."

"You are going to show it to him," one of the old priestesses said, shaking her head. "The Dark One is not to be trusted."

"Well, I definitely trust him over Pan," I said. "Besides, he's already seen it. Rumpelstiltskin has no desire to become purely magical, it's of no appeal to him. He is not the danger in our situation. I came back to get the scroll and to tell you where I'm going. So that, in the case that Pan might manage to take me out – you are prepared."

Adriane watched me worriedly. "Do you think that is a legit possibility?"

"I think Pan to be unscrupulous. If he gets a chance, he'll take it. I promise to be careful for your sake and the sake of Avalon as much as for the boy we are trying to save. But there's no guarantee. There never is."

The Elders kept muttering to each other while I pocketed the scroll. It was ancient, very hard to read but not as mazy as Viviane's notes had always been.

"Well," Adriane finally spoke up. "It's good you told us, at least. Though we are not in favour of you taken that with you we trust your judgement. We hope to find you back soon."

"Excellent," I said. "That's all I wanted to hear."

Adriane followed me on the heel as I strut outside and towards my room. Elaine greeted me at once, hurrying to comply with my orders of packing warm and comfortable clothes as well as several blankets.

"You think it will take a while?"

"We don't do act on the moment. We think things through."

"We?" Adriane repeated bitterly. "You and the Dark One."

"Well, he was my teacher, love."

She snorted but I ignored her as Elaine brought a rather large bundle. "Thank you – and Elaine, food and drink if it doesn't trouble you-"

"I'll be quick, milady."

I nodded and turned to Adriane again. "I don't know why you are being so judgey. Don't you trust me?"

"Yes, I do. I just know that you never were the same person you were before leaving Avalon back then. He changed you."

"For the better," I said grimly.

She sighed heavily. "I just don't want you to get into things we can't handle here."

"That's just what I'm setting out to prevent. Now, if you'll excuse me."

I heard her sigh again but I ignored it. Time was of the essence.

* * *

"_Back again, are you, dearie?"  
_

_I avoided looking directly at him as I said. "I can't go home."  
_

_He gave a high-pitched giggle as he practically jumped to his feet and advanced on me. "'Course you can't. You're not quite there."  
_

_"No," I said, suddenly feeling the courage to look up at him. "I could, technically. But I don't want to. I can't go home without being absolutely in control. You snap me out of it all the time. We are not done."  
_

_He cocked his head to the side curiously. "Is that so?"  
_

_"Yes, it is. You're supposed to teach me. So quit complaining and do your job."  
_

_He chuckled again, but this time, his voice remained on the much lower tones. "Oh, really, dearie? Aren't you feeling brave?"  
_

_I squared my shoulders. "If you don't fulfil your side of our deal, I have no reason to fulfil mine."  
_

_I met his eyes with as much confidence as I could muster. It was nonsense, of course. I might have been able to do it, take away his magic, if he _really_ pushed me. But I would not. In contrast to Viviane, I saw no reason to. That he had mastered his weakness – the dagger – by owning it, was just a little unfortunate, but it didn't threaten the balance of nature. Cutting him off was just one of many ridiculous notions my predecessor had had._

"_I suggest you think that through. You must know, all magic comes with a price! Trust me, you're not willing to pay that price."  
_

_"Let's just not find out, love," I said, meeting his eyes defiantly. _

_He glared for a moment, but finally, his mouth spread into a wide grin. "Well then. Let's get back to our lesson."_

* * *

"You just keep popping up, don't you?"

"Pan, I was hoping to speak to you."

He raised an eyebrow to incredible heights. "Hoping to get him back, are you, Morgaine? Well, he's got this other girl now-"

"This is not about him," I snapped, trying not to think about what he was implying. This other girl – had he found Belle again? Had he not always said that she was dead?

"Then, tell me, what is this about?" Pan asked, slowly walking towards me as if he didn't have any care in the world.

"I know what you're planning to do," I informed him shortly. "I know you found the Heart of the Truest Believer."

"And?" he challenged.

"Don't play dumb," I said. "You're attempting the ritual. Now, let me tell you – if you so much as start, I'll make sure your magic will fade until nothing is left."

He watched me closely, a small smile playing around his lips. "Very well. I've heard your warning."

I took a step closer to him. "Don't think I won't go through with it."

"Oh, no, no," he said, still smiling. His calm demeanour was rather unsettling. "I have no doubt you will."

* * *

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	6. Make Your Choice

**Thanks to everyone who read, fav'd, alerted and especially to Boyz for reviewing! Reviews are greatly appreciated and I would love it if there were more people to review. Just saying ;)**

* * *

**Make Your Choice**

* * *

"There you are."

In a, for him, extremely uncharacteristic manner, Rumple pulled me to him and hugged me.

Smiling uncertainly, I pulled back. "Here I am. And I brought the scroll."

"Good," he said. "I couldn't remember it all."

"Me neither," I said. "Though it proved to be a bit of a fight."

He pulled a face. "Your Elders always put up a fight."

"With that you're right."

I looked around, surprised to see that we were alone in the clearing. "Where's the rest of your little group?"

"Ah, Operation Henry has obviously been expanded. They went to save Bae."

"And you didn't go along?"

He sighed heavily. "I doubt he'll want to see me."

"It's your son. I think he would like to see you all right when you come to his rescue-"

"We have important matters to discuss," he interrupted me quickly. "Let's get to it."

I narrowed my eyes at him suspiciously, but decided that he was right. Stopping Pan was the more pressing matter at hand.

"Well," I said, taking out the scroll and unrolling it. "There seem to be various ingredients to the ritual, including ripping out the heart and, uh, replacing your own with it..."

Rumple held out his hand and I handed him the roll to study it. His eyes flew over the page and I watched his brows furrow. "It says someone else has to die."

"Yes," I said slowly. "So that the bearer of the heart – Henry – stands between life and death. See, this ritual is very old. Archaic."

"Well," he said. "It doesn't matter. We stop him before it. Won't we?"

* * *

"_I will be back," I assured him. "Once Beltane is done, I will return for my lessons."  
_

_"Dearie, you will return sooner."  
_

_I raised an eyebrow at him. "What are you suggesting?"_

"_Oh, I just keep thinking, what will your Elders say when they learn that you've been taught by me? Huh? What do you think? Will they be proud? Glad? See you as the powerful Lady you are?"_

_I watched him gesturing dramatically and rolled my eyes. "They'll just be glad I'm back."  
_

_"You're wrong," he said._

"_They'll respect my decisions," I said, turning to inspect myself in the mirror. "I am the Lady."_

_He giggled. "Oh, but to them, you're only a sixteen-year old girl, dearie. Unless, of course, you step up to the authority you have. But we both know that won't happen. You mark my words, you'll be back before the week is done."_

_I turned around harshly to tell him off, but flinched as I found him much closer than I had thought. Taking a deep breath, I told him, "You're wrong."  
_

_Again, he cackled. "We'll see."_

* * *

Our little group of heroes made an awful lot of noise as they came stumbling through the forest. Emerging on the clearing, I found that they had an addition. I cocked my head to the side and eyed the dark-haired man. So that was Baelfire. Rumple had very rarely spoken of him, but his every plan had been geared to finding his son.

"So you're back," Regina stated coldly as she took me in. "A little assistance would have been nice."

"You will find," I said calmly. "That the deal I made is between me and Rumpelstiltskin and has absolutely nothing to do with helping you."

"You made a deal with my father?"

My gaze turned to Baelfire as Rumple uttered a pleading, "Bae..."

"Neal!" the man snapped.

"All right, boys, calm down." I looked back and forth between them. "Seriously, I don't know why you're at each other's throats. And yes, I did make a deal with your father. Again. Don't I ever learn?"

"Apparently not, dearie."

I grinned back at Rumple, but his son did not seem to find any of this particularly amusing. Baelfire was glaring at his father. Had he never forgiven his father? I had always felt sure that he would be happy once the two found each other again.

"Look, whatever he told you, he's not to be trusted. He's going to kill Henry."

This announcement caused a predictable uproar. Everyone's eyes turned to Rumpelstiltskin, who was shaking his head. "I have no intention to harm the boy, I-"  
"You told me yourself that you were going to-"

"I never knew he was my grandson then! Things have changed-"

"Okay, okay, wait," the prince was stepping in the middle of the group. "What is going on?"

"Nothing's going on," I said quickly. "All right, no one will kill Henry. Not Rumple, not Pan. We have a plan."

* * *

_I opened my eyes to bright sunlight shining onto blooming apple trees. I let out the breath that had caught in my throat. I had claimed to be confident about my skills, but I had still worried that I might not be able to do it. I shuddered inwardly, thinking about the ridicule I would have had to face had I failed. Oh, I could practically hear his mocking giggle... but I _had_ done it. _

_I turned towards the abbey and forced myself forward. Halfway towards it, I saw a figure sprinting towards me. Hitching up her skirt, Adriane was hurrying towards me. Adriane had been born the same year as I and we had grown up together. Ever since we could grasp the concept, we considered ourselves best friends._

_She practically crashed into me, throwing her arms around me and hugging me close. "Oh, Morgaine, Morgaine... we were so worried..."  
_

_"I'm fine," I assured her. "More than fine, actually."_

_She stepped back, eyeing me from head to toe. "You're different."  
_

_"It's only been two months, Adriane."_

"_Come on," she said. "The Elders will want to see you."_

* * *

"So, Pan's attempting this ritual," Emma summed up. "That will kill Henry."

"Yes," I said, nodding at her. "But we won't let him do it. We will make sure he has no chance of doing the ritual."

"What are you suggesting?" Hook inquired, leaning casually against a tree on the far end of the group.

"There is this vessel he needs," I explained calmly. "It has to contain the heart's ashes, and then has to be set on fire. If we can find it and destroy it, it's done."

"Great," Hook sneered. "Let's go find the magic bowl and get out of here."

"It's not going to be quite so easy," Rumple said curtly.

"Why not?" Regina inquired. "Doesn't sound so hard."

"Well, for starters, we have no idea where the vessel is," I told her.

"Do you think Pan has it?" Snow White asked seriously.

"I don't think so. If he had the vessel, he would've probably gone through with it already," Baelfire – Neal – answered. "He's not the guy to wait."

"Impatient, huh?" I muttered.

"Like a child," Rumple added, smirking slightly at me.

"Well, sadly he's not as easily taken down as a child," Regina snarled. "We should get to work."

"Please," I snapped. "Enlighten me – how do you propose we find the vessel?"

At that, Regina fell silent, her brows furrowing thoughtfully.

"What about the globe you used to find Neal?" Emma said suddenly. "Do you have it with you, Gold?"

"No, I haven't," he said. "But I'm sure we could enchant another object."

"Like a map," Charming suggested.

Hurriedly, Rumple turned to me. "Could you do it?"

"Of course," I answered. "But we'd need a map of several possible realms. Neverland, the Enchanted Forest."

"What about Avalon?" Regina said.

"Well, it's been stolen years before I was even born. It's definitely not in Avalon."

"Hook, do you have maps on the ship?"

The pirate looked around and finally rolled his eyes. "Aye, I have."

"Good," Snow said, getting to her feet. "Then what are you waiting for? Let's go."

* * *

"_We really are quite disappointed of you."  
_

_I raised an incredulous eyebrow at Igraine, leader of the Elder's Council. "Disappointed? I have managed to control my magic. I really don't see how that is source of disappointment."  
_

_Igraine sighed heavily, stepping towards me. "Morgaine, dear. You went to the Dark One for help – you are in his debt. That was quite a foolish notion; in fact, you should have known better after studying Viviane's scrolls."  
_

_"Viviane was foolish and obviously confused woman," I said curtly. "She was wrong in all that she said about him."  
_

_"He fooled you, Morgaine. It's what he does-"  
_

_"Have you met him?" I asked challengingly. "Have you?"  
_

_"Morgaine-"  
_

_"Stop!" I said, holding up a hand to silence her. "None of you know what you're talking about. Don't you trust my judgement?"  
_

_"Listen, Morgaine, you are still very young-"  
_

_"I am your Lady," I bit back. "I expect you to treat me with all due respect. And I also expect you to respect my choice of teacher."_

_The Elders exchanged wary glances before Igraine finally spoke up again. "Morgaine, you are obviously confused and-"  
_

_"All right, listen – either you are willing to pay me the respect I deserve or you can find someone else to light your Beltane fires."  
_

_I turned on the heel and moved to stride out. _

"_You would risk the Beltane fires?" another of the Elders called after me._

_I didn't even bother to look over my shoulder. "You know how to contact me."_

* * *

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	7. Handle With Care

**Oh, for God's sake, can someone _please_ review this thing?**

* * *

**Handle With Care**

* * *

We were a rather peculiar group, walking behind each other in one long line. Emma was leading the way; she had claimed that she was the leader of our expedition as she was the Saviour. Hook was right behind her, probably giving the directions to her. Baelfire – Neal – went next, his glaring eyes fixed on the pirate's back. Obviously, he had inherited the dislike from his father. Charming and Snow had insisted on going last, wanting to make sure that the back of the group was still protected and they did not care for my argument that magic would protect us even better. Apparently, they believed more in sheer force.

Neverland was not a place for force, though. It was a place where imagination ran wild; magic would be our best bet in any fight.

"Are we still on the right way?" Snow called from behind us.

It took a second for Emma to call back. "Yes!"

I was sure she did not want us to hear it, but it nonetheless reached my ears when Snow whispered to her husband, "I didn't think we had gone so far..."

She was right, of course. I had no orientation in Neverland, but I would not have thought that they had gone so far from the shore. It was not very clever and it astounded me that a pirate would leave his ship unattended for so long.

There was a loud shriek as right in front of me, Regina was suddenly lifted into the air. I stopped, causing Rumple to walk into me as the group in front of me whirled around. Regina was cursing loudly, as she dangled upside-down from a tree, her right foot trapped with rope.

"Regina," Snow breathed as Charming stepped forward, sword already drawn and stretched out to cut the rope.

"Don't!" the queen shrieked. "I'll fall on my head."

"So-?"

"Magic, forgot it?" Regina ground out, closing her eyes as she swayed slightly on the rope.

"Deep breaths, dearie," Rumple advised amusedly.

"I don't need you teach me anymore!" she snapped.

She disappeared again and reappeared on her foot right next to me. "Well," she said, dusting of her jacket. "We should watch out better from now on."

I nodded, looking around. "Pan will put any obstacle possible in our way. We should hurry."

* * *

We reached the shore on late afternoon. It was strange to step out of the woods and to find the sun shining brightly. In the thick forest we had wandered, the light only very rarely broke through.

I stopped as my feet touched sand. Hook was looking through his spy-glass.

"And?" Emma asked. "How's it looking?"

The muscles on his jaw clenched. "Not good."

"What does not good mean?" Regina asked. "Be a little more precise."

"It's still up, all right?" Hook bit back, putting the spy-glass down. "Doesn't look good though."

"Can we get on it or are we going to sink?" I asked impatiently.

"Well, I guess we just going to have to find out," the pirate answered.

"All right, then," I said. "How about we just do this – Hook and I are going over there."

"You sure you want to go with the pirate, dearie?"

I looked over to Rumple and rolled my eyes. "I have to have a look at which maps I can use and Hook is the one who knows where the maps are. So it's the two of us."

"Great," Hook muttered.

"C'mon, pirate, let's get this done."

"We left the rowboat down there," he said pointing down the coast line. "A mile, maybe?"

"A mile?" I said weakly. "Why didn't you lead us there already?"

"It's not like I have a map with me, is it?"

"Why didn't you bring it with you in the first place?"

"We had to leave in quite a hurry," he said grimly.

I huffed, but decided to accept my fate. Without Hook, of course, I would have been much quicker but I needed him with me when I went to look for the map.

"We should all go with them to the row boat. So that we know where they'll land again."

Regina incredulously turned to Snow White. "I need a pause."

"We can have a pause once we saved Henry!" Emma snapped.

"It's going to take a while," I said. "Why don't you just take your pause and follow up in an hour or so? Out-of-Hand and I are going to be fine."

Hook glared at me, but I paid him no mind. Rumple nodded at me while Snow White was still busy shaking her head at the queen.

"Good," I said, turning to Hook. "Let's go."

* * *

By the time we reached the boat, I was out of breath due to the tremendous tempo Hook had set. Of course, it was in our best interest to be quick, but I still was not in the shape for such a tortuous march.

"Don't look so gloomy," Hook said. "It's not you who'll be rowing, is it?"

He held out his hand to help me into the boat. Ignoring it, I climbed into the boat. "Yes, I don't think so, dearie."

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Well, if you want to row, then please, go ahead-"

"I tell you how we do it," I said, leaning slightly forward as he sat down across from me. "Magic."

"I don't have much faith in magic."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Well, you might understand that I do."

With a wave of my hand, the paddles developed a life of their own. Rowing us forward in fast, forceful strokes.

* * *

He thought he saw the small boat setting off towards the Jolly Roger. "We should get going," he announced, turning around to the group gathered on the ground.  
Bae had spent the last hour filling the group in on what had happened when the two of them had tried to rescue Henry. Spitefully, Bae had described what he learned about the prophecy. Since then, he felt various glares on his back every time he turned it to them.  
He was wounded by Bae's view. He had no intention to harm Henry, quite the contrary. He felt sure that he was going to die on this quest. All that was left was to make sure that they succeeded nonetheless.

"He's right," Emma announced. "Let's go."

Gathering their belongings, the group prepared to leave while he turned to look for the boat again. He believed to spot it well off the shore. They were moving very fast, probably using magic.  
He turned his head as he felt a presence at his side. It was Bae, looking out as well.

"Maybe you would be more effective on your own," he said.

"Do you want me to leave?"

"Yeah, I do."

He sighed heavily. "Bae, I give you my word that-"

"Your word doesn't mean much, though," his son snarled. "I know that better than anyone."

"Bae-"

"It's Neal," he snarled. "And I don't want you anywhere near my son."

"What's going on?" Emma said, walking up to them. "Neal, come on."

"I just told my father he should stay behind."

"What?" she exclaimed. "No!"

Bae looked at her incredulously. "Didn't you listen? He's going to kill Henry!"

"Well, our only chance at saving Henry is this Morgaine and I doubt she'll help us if we banish your father."

Bae huffed and took off after the others.

"Thank you," he said, nodding at Emma.

"Didn't do it for you, Gold. And just so we're clear. If you go after Henry, I'm going to end you myself."

* * *

I twisted in my seat to look how far we had to go. We were very close already, but it was starting to dawn. Not long, and it would be completely dark. The thought of being on a sinking pirate ship in the dark was unsettling. Adding Hook to it did not make it much better.

Hook looked up at his ship with a pained expression. "She used to be a beauty," he mused.

"You talk of your ship as if it was a woman. Are you really so desperate?"

He waggled his eyebrows at me. "Can't say that I am, no."

I huffed and shook my head. Pirate, I reminded myself. What was I to expect?

"How do we get up?"

He reached behind him and pulled up a rope, fitted with a hook. "We climb."

"You know what? You do that and I help myself."

"I hate magic," he said darkly, throwing the rope up. It caught somewhere on deck and he pulled on it hard to make sure it held his weight.

"Now, don't be ridiculous, love."

Disappearing and appearing again was still one of the weirdest forms of magic I knew. It was as if, for a moment, you lost yourself completely, only to be built up again. It was the strangest sensation.

As I appeared on deck, close to the railing, Hook was already halfway up. I had to give that to him, for a one-handed man he was climbing pretty well.

He placed one hand on the railing and pulled his upper body up. Groaning, he looked up to me. "Help a pirate out?"

I rolled my eyes but grabbed his good arm to help pull him up. He flopped onto deck right at my feet. "That's how I like it."

He glared up at me and got to his feet. His gaze travelled over the ship. "Bloody hell," he muttered. "I'll need a new ship."

In fact, most of the ship seemed to be in a rather bad shape. The sails had crashed onto the deck and several large chunks of wood were spread around.

"Don't be silly," I said. "Magic can mend it again."

He raised an eyebrow. "What? Warming up to me now?"

"Hardly," I scoffed. "You were just looking like lost puppy."

"Cute?"

"Pathetic."

He shrugged and waved his hand for me to follow him. He moved through the ruins of his ship with a sort of grace I hadn't seen on him before. It was obvious that he was in his element here.

"What is that?" I asked, stopping suddenly at a wooden figurine.

Hook stopped and looked over his shoulder. "A dead mermaid."

"What?" I exclaimed.

"Captured her when they attacked us," he explained quickly. "Regina got rid of her."

"You killed a mermaid," I said incredulously. "I don't believe it."

"Are we getting these maps or what?"

I glared at him, but followed nonetheless. Killing a mermaid was madness. They were highly magical and everyone knew that killing something magical came at a price. Every bit of magic did. Besides, mermaids were rather vindictive. And they never forgot.

Hook was striding towards the helm. His hand casually graced it before he looked around. "They should be here."

"What do you mean they _should_ be?"

"I mean they are not here, sweetheart."

I walked around to helm to look around myself. "And you're sure you kept them around here?"

"Always. Close to the helm, where they'd be needed."

"Maybe I can do locator spell," I mused. "But I'd need some time, maybe we're quicker just searching..."

Suddenly, the ship jerked and swayed violently. Crying out in surprise, I grabbed onto Hook, who miraculously wasn't fazed by the sudden movement.

He grinned down at me and I practically jumped back. "Sorry..."

"No matter, I know you can't help yourself."

"Please," I said. "As if I would-"

But I was interrupted by another sudden jerk. This time, I stumbled because I refused to hold onto him again. "What's going on?"

"Well-"

Again, the ship swayed, and again.

"What the actual-"

With a new jerk, the ship swayed incredibly far to the side. By now, Hook was holding on to the helm to stop himself from stumbling around. As the ship swayed back, I hurried over to the railing, directly followed by the pirate.

My eyes widened as we looked down into the water. "Mermaids," I breathed.


	8. Into The Wild

**Guys, please. I can see that people read it, I can see people alerting and whatnot - so can someone please review? It's really frustrating to not hear from you. So PLEASE. For me?**

* * *

"Bloody hell," Hook said, staring down next to me. "Again?"

"Seriously? You turned one of them into a figurehead!" I said accusingly.

"Did not."

"Did too."

"Regina did it."

I groaned and followed it up by a scream as the slap of the mermaids' tales caused the ship to jerk again. "We need to find the maps. Quick," I said.

Both of us whirled around and headed towards the helm again.

"They must have been thrown around when we got attacked last time," Hook stated.

"Great, you search up here, I go down there," I said before hurrying down the steps.

As quickly as I could, ever interrupted by the sudden jerks of the ship, I searched through the ruins. I waved wooden splinters and the like away, hurriedly sorting through the remainders, but I did not see a hint of the maps.

* * *

"What's going on over there?" Snow White asked, stopping in her tracks to look out at the ocean.

Even for the untrained eye, it was obvious that something was very much wrong with the ship. The Jolly Roger was swaying violently back and forth obviously just keeping from falling over. Even a storm would have never caused this. And there was not even a light breeze.

"Are they getting attacked again?" Charming said, stepping forward to join his wife.

"What do you mean, again?"

"We got attacked by mermaids after you left," Emma said quickly. "Regina turned one of them into wood and then there was this storm-"

"Wait, wait," he said, holding up a hand. "You turned a mermaid into wood?"

"She was a liability," Regina said haughtily.

"Sometimes I think you really are stupid, dearie."

She raised an incredulous eyebrow at him, but he had turned his attention back to the ship.

"If that's true, the mermaids are going to be out for revenge."

"So, what do we do?" Emma inquired.

"We go to where you left the rowboat and wait for them to return," he said matter-of-factly.

"What?" Charming exclaimed. "They are getting attacked!"

"Yes, so what am I supposed to do about it? If she can't help herself, I can't either."

* * *

This time, I outright fell as the ship swayed so far I almost thought it would flip over. I tumbled against the railing and just so caught myself. Then, my gaze landed on something that made my heart jump. I scrambled forward, reaching for the papers I saw. They wouldn't come free and I let out a yell of frustration. The heavy wooden crest they had been trapped under splintered and fell apart as I looked on with an open mouth. I had been a really long time since I had lost control of my magic like this.

I grabbed the papers and looked on.

Relieved, I called out for Hook, "I got them!"

I would not have thought that anyone could move so fast without magic. Hook appeared next to me and reached out to grab the maps from me.

"Nu-uh," I made. "I'll hold on to those."

"Okay, whatever, let's just-"

With a horrible crash, bits of the rowboat flew through the air and I just so managed to avoid a flying paddle.

"Damn."

Hook looked incredulously over the railing. "What are we going to do now?"

"Well, I could leave, but there's still you – wait."

The ship bent incredibly far towards the water and we had to hold on to the mast so we would not fall off.

"What?" Hook yelled to me.

"Well – I could shrink you," I told him hurriedly. "If you're small enough to fit in the bag, I can transport you with me."

He eyed me sceptically. "How will I know you change me back?"

I stared at him incredulously. "Are you insane? We're about to drown-"

In fact, the ship bend forward yet again and I shrieked slightly as I watched the water draw nearer.

"Well, I don't want to be Tom Thumb for the rest of my life."

"Oh, damn it, fine. You take the maps."

I held them out to him and he grabbed them quickly. In turn, I grabbed his arm. "Missing me already?"

"Don't be ridiculous. I just don't want to go searching for you once I shrank you."

I waved my hand and muttered, "_Shrink_" just as the ship started bending forward again. Hook rapidly shrank into my hand until I could, in fact, stuff him into my bag. "Sorry, buddy."

I left the ship right before it flipped over.

* * *

I heard the gentle rustling of leafs and breathed a sigh of relief. I frowned myself at an uncharacteristic cracking noise from the forest. I opened my eyes just as Emma, followed directly by her parents broke through the trees and arrived at the shore.

"Oh thank God," she exclaimed. "Gold, she's here!"

He, his son and Regina walked out of the woods next and he looked about as relieved as could be expected of him.

"Where's Hook?" Regina demanded.

"Oh, right," I said. "I forgot."

I reached into my bag. "Hey, mate, can you like, climb on my hand? It's kind of hard to find you in there."

Soon after, I did feel him climbing onto my hand. Sometimes, I couldn't quite believe the strange things magic got me into. I pulled him out and set him down on a stone in front of me. He was gesturing wildly but his voice was too small to hear what he was saying.

"What did you do to him?" Emma asked, looking on incredulously.

"Well, we got attacked. Needed to leave quickly so I needed to find a way to take him along." I eyed him thoughtfully. "I sort of like him like this. He's getting on my nerves whenever he talks."

"Then leave him like that," Rumple advised.

"Sorry, can't," I sighed. "We made a deal. He's got the maps."

"You made a deal," Baelfire repeated, shaking his head.

"Can't deny my teacher, can I? Oh, all right, Hook, don't worry," I snapped at the figure gesturing even more prominently. "_Grow._"

Watching him grow before my very eyes was maybe even stranger than seeing him shrink. Soon he was standing in full height again and shuddered. "I really thought you'd leave me like that."

"We can repeat that any time," I told him. "Maps, please."

He glared at me, but handed me the maps without protest. "I want them back," he said. "I need them if I ever get a ship again."

"Told you, I'll mend your ship," I snapped. "It's not beyond rescue."

"It flipped over," he bit back.

"So what?"

"Okay, can we get on with it?" Regina interrupted and I turned to her.

"Of course." I bend down and spread the maps on the ground. I looked up as a shadow fell on them.

"What do you think?" I asked Rumple. "Which rear will it be?"

"I'd try the Enchanted Forest."

I nodded and reached out to pull the map closer. I took a deep breath and stretched my hand out over the map. Carefully moving over it, I muttered under my breath to enchant it.

"What's she doing?" Emma asked curiously.

"It's a locator spell," I said.

"I don't see anything on it," Snow White remarked.

"Well, yes," I said. "Rumple, I need the scroll."

He handed me the scroll and I ripped of an edge.

"What-?"

"It needs something to trigger the locating." Swiftly, I burned the piece of parchment and blew some of it onto the map.

"I still don't see anything," Snow told me.

"Obviously. What next?"

Rumple pulled a face. "I guess we could try Neverland-"

"It's not very likely, is it?" Hook said grimly. "If it was right under Pan's nose-"

"It's worth as shot," Charming decided. "Go ahead."

I grabbed the map, again guiding my hand over it to put the spell on it. Holding up my other hand with the ashes again, I lightly blew it over the map.

My eyes widened as I saw the map start to glow. "Blimey," I muttered. "It _is_ on Neverland."

"What a coincidence," Hook said.

"Fate," Rumple told him. "There're no coincidences."

"Do you think Pan knows?" Emma asked, looking at the map over my shoulder.

"He would have gotten it already, wouldn't he?" Regina said.

"At least we should prepare for a few surprises on our way," Snow said.

"You, map-boy." I handed the map to Hook. "Have a good look at it, memorize the path."

He frowned at me, then looked down at the map for about twenty seconds before he noted, "Done."

"Good," I said, lighting the map on fire. Hook screamed in surprise and let the burning parchment drop to the floor. "We don't want Pan to steal that from us. Go on, lead the way."

"Hold up!" Emma suddenly said. "Who made you leader of this?"

"I just said Hook was the leader."

"Look," she said, stepping towards me. "I'm Henry's mother, I want-"

"With all due respect, Emma, for being the Saviour and whatnot. I need to work with professionals here."

She raised her eyebrows at me, but I just turned away.

"What are you waiting for?" I asked. "Let's get going."

* * *

**Use that box below, pretty please :) **


	9. Dead Man Walking

**So, er, I did get a review, if not for the last chapter, but still (a very constructive one, too, thank you very much!). Maybe we can improve that? What about a review for _this_ chapter? It'd make me very happy :)**

* * *

"_Back already, dearie?"  
_

_I huffed and let my bag fall to the floor. "Yes," I said through my teeth._

_I was still practically shaking with anger. How dare they talk to me like that? All my life, I had done as they said, had complied to their every wish and now..._

"_Huh," he giggled. "I really don't know what you want here."  
_

_"Rumple, please, I'm not in the mood."  
_

_"Ah, but you see, I'm not ready to have you here – you said you'd come back after Beltane."  
_

_I raised an eyebrow at him. "You told me you knew I would be back."  
_

_He waved his hand dismissively and turned back to sit at his spinning wheel._

_I rolled my eyes at his back. "You want to hear you were right, yes?"  
_

_"Well, I'd like that."  
_

_"You were right," I said. "They told me I was foolish, said they were disappointed."  
_

_"Because of me?" he said, putting a hand to his heart in feigned hurt. _

_I sighed heavily and sat down on the bench next to him. "Why are you always right?"  
_

_"It's a burden, dearie."_

"_I can stay, can't I?"  
_

_"If you have to."  
_

_I smiled lightly and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. "Thank you."_

* * *

"We should search for a sleeping place," Baelfire said. "It's gone completely dark."

"He's right," Emma said. "I'm tired, too."

Rumple looked as though he was not at all happy with that suggestion. As he opened his mouth to speak, I shook my head at him. It was no use stumbling through the forest when you were barely able to keep your eyes open. I, for my part, was very tired indeed.

"Aye," Hook announced. "We'll take the next cave we find."

Emma exchanged a glance with her mother and I saw her rolling her eyes. I stood by my estimation. We needed someone experience both with Neverland and quests in general to guide us here and Hook – even though I disliked him – had both. Emma, in contrast, was just a girl who grew up in a land where magic did not even exist.

"It appears you made yourself some enemies."

I turned my head to see that Regina had caught up to me. "Why, you would know all about that, wouldn't you?"

Her face fell. "I know how to get rid of enemies, too," she sneered.

"Oh, please," I sighed. "I'm really not against you. You can be evil all you like and it'll be all right with me. See, there are so many good people. Who is there to balance it? You're quite important for the natural balance."

I watched her brows furrowing. "I'm not sure if that's a compliment or an insult," she stated.

I shrugged. "Neither. But if you want a compliment, please. At least you're not boring."

She smirked at me and I smiled back. How come I always bonded with villains?

"We got something here!" Snow White called from the front, causing Regina and I to hurry up and join them.

They had indeed found a cave that venture a few feet below ground. It was just large enough for us, but anything was better than to have to sleep out in the open.

I looked around as the others started preparing their bedsteads. "We should put a few protection spells up," I told Rumple. "I don't want to have visitors tonight."

* * *

"_Why do you keep spinning?" I asked curiously, abandoning my current project of altering my hair colour. _

"_What do you mean?"  
_

_"You keep spinning and spinning, what for? It makes no sense."  
_

_"Helps me forget."  
_

_"What do you have to forget?" I asked. _

"_Can't you imagine that after two hundred years there're one or two things I'd like to forget?" he snapped._

"_Obviously," I said, putting a hand on the wheel to stop it from turning. "This is not some random thing or you would just tell me."  
_

_"I won't tell you," he asked. "Move your hand."  
_

_"You know what? I don't think I will."_

"_Do you really want to start a fight, dearie?"  
_

_"Maybe I do."_

_He glared at me, dark round eyes blazing, but I held my ground. Mainly, I was bored. I had been so sure the Elders would come for my before Beltane. Now, the celebration was only a day away and they had not come for me and I was starting to get tired of waiting. Rumpelstiltskin, meanwhile, seemed not to have a care in the world as he kept on spinning more and more gold..._

"_You want to know what I forget?"  
_

_"Yes."  
_

_"My son."  
_

_Startled, I let my hand drop from the wheel. "Your son?"_

"_I hate to repeat myself."  
_

_"No, I just – I never knew you had a son."  
_

_"Well, I never told you," he said, standing up and walking past me._

"_What happened to him?"  
_

_"Huh?"  
_

_"Well, he's not here anymore," I said carefully. "Something must have happened."_

"_I lost him," Rumple said curtly._

_I stepped towards. "You know if you ever want to talk-"  
_

_"Then I won't go to a teenage runaway." _

_I stared at him for a moment, then turned away, attempting to hide the tears in my eyes. Behind me, I heard the door to the hall slam shut._

* * *

I woke in the middle of the night. At once, I was undeniably awake; there was no going back to sleep. Several people were breathing calmly around me. But as I opened my eyes, I found that two were missing. Hook and Charming were nowhere to be seen. I sat up, distressed at once. Where were they? Had they left? Had someone – but no. Why would anyone take Hook and Charming and leave everyone else alone?

Careful not to disturb anyone, I got up and slowly made my way towards the entrance of the cave. Sure enough, I saw the small glimmer of a fire being lit outside.

"Forget it, Hook," I heard Charming say. "I won't tell them."

"Don't be so stubborn, mate. There's still hope-"

"We have more important things to do, okay? I won't burden them with this, too."

"Burden us with what?" I asked, stepping outside and raising my eyebrows at the two.

They stared up at me open-mouthed.

"Put that fire out, you're blowing our cover," I said. "Some lousy pirate you are."

Hook glared but followed my order anyway. Meanwhile, I turned my attention to the prince.

"So – what is that secret you're keeping?"

"He's dying," Hook supplied when Charming didn't answer.

"What?"

"Dreamshade," Charming sighed. "Can't be helped."

"You said there was hope," I said to Hook.

"Yes..."

"Speak."

"There's this spring, aye? It has healing powers. Slight problem, though-"

"We don't have time to get it," Charming ground out.

"You know what? You need to be saved from yourself. Until then, let the pirate speak."

Charming glared at me, but I turned back to Hook and gestured for him to continue.

"Problem is, if he takes it, he can't leave the island. Ever again."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "We can find a solution for that."

"You think?" Charming said. "Where would that be? Somewhere in the mystical depth of your apple island?"

"I'm sure I could dig around there. But I don't have to, if you would rather stay here."

"We don't have the time to go looking for that water-"

"You know where it is?" I asked Hook.

"Sure."

"All right. You go get it. We continue on the path and..."

"You remember that lake about three thirds down the path?" Hook asked.

I nodded quickly.

"Good. You put up your shelter there and we'll find you again."

"Fine," I said. "Be quick. But careful."

Hook turned to the prince and motioned for him to get up. Charming glared at him, but complied. I watched as the two of them set off into forest.

* * *

"_You are blonde."  
_

_I didn't even look __up from the mirror. "I know."_

_"You learned to do it."  
_

_"It's not that hard," I said drily. _

"_Well, you did have some trouble, dearie-"  
_

_"Don't call me dearie," I snapped, finally looking at him. "I don't really want to talk to you anyway."  
_

_"Why are you still here then?"  
_

_I huffed, turning back to the mirror again. I wanted to go back to my natural brown hair-colour. _

"You_ kept _me_ from spinning."  
_

_"You've been an arse," I snarled, getting up to face him. "I'm not a child, nor am I a runaway. I lay my life open for you to see but you get unjust the moment I might glimpse behind the facade. What are you afraid I'll see? I saw the monster. How can it be worse to see the man?"_

_He opened his mouth to answer but he was interrupted by a forceful bang on the door. _

"_So your Elders finally did come," Rumple stated, striding out to the hall.  
__I hurried to follow him. Who knew what he would do if they managed to anger him; he was in a mood, anyway. He let the doors fly wide open and I found Igraine standing outside, her eyes widening slightly as she took him in._

"_I've come to get Morgaine," she stated._

"_Huh," he made. "Where have I heard that name?"_

"_Stop playing around," I scolded, joining him at the doorstep. "You can't get me, Igraine. Maybe if you ask nicely, I'll come with you."_

"_Morgaine, please, you can't really want to stay with that monster-"  
_

_"He's not a monster," I said.  
_

_"We did have a fight, though, dearie," Rumple said._

"_What, and that make you a beast?" Our eyes met and I gave him a small smile. "I'm listening," I added to Igraine without looking her way._

"_You can chose your teacher and the Elders will not speak against it. We need you to light the Beltane fires."  
_

_"Are you convinced?" I asked him nonchalantly._

"_No."  
_

_"I'm not convinced," I said, turning to Igraine again. "See, it's not only the teacher. You do not respect your Lady."  
_

_"Morgaine, you're acting like a child-"  
_

_"There's a theme today," I muttered._

"_Listen, Morgaine, we want you to light the fires because we think you are ready. I am sorry if we disrespected you, but we are only acting in your best interest."  
_

_"Do you promise to trust my judgement in the future? Are you ready to treat me as an adult? Because otherwise, I might just have to go my own way."_

"_You have to allow us to advise you-"  
_

_I held up a hand to interrupt her and looked at Rumple again. "What do you think?"_

"_Go along."  
_

_"You just want to get back to spinning."  
_

_"That I do," he answered, grinning at me._

_I sighed but nodded to Igraine. "Fine. I'll go with you."_

* * *

**Seriously, though, please leave a review - love the flashbacks, hate 'em, every comment is fine.  
Have yourself a lovely day :)**


	10. Silver Lining

**So, OUAT returns tonight! Are y'all excited? I know I am.  
Still haven't gotten any reviews and I feel like it's becoming some sort of running gag. Right? Kind of like Leo winning no Oscars, except not as important and humiliating ;) **

* * *

"Get up, temporary friends!" I announced loudly. "We have quite a way before us today!"

Snow White and her daughter responded with a mutual groan. Regina, too, seemed to have a hard time adjusting to being awake. Rumple, of course, appeared to be wide awake at once. I had waited for the first ray of sunshine to break through the darkness until I woke them. Every moment spent with unnecessary resting was time wasted.

"Where's David?" Snow White asked, looking around in confusion.

"Who?"

"David – Prince Charming, remember?"

"Oh," I said. "So that's his name? It's good to know. Ridiculous to call him charming, anyway."

Snow White glared and I sighed.

"Not sure if he wants me to tell-"

"Hook's gone as well," Emma announced. "Spill, girl." I saw her reaching towards her bedstead, for the sword, undoubtedly, and raised an eyebrow, causing the blanket to tangle around her.

"What the-"

"Self-preservation," I said lightly. "Hook and uh, David – have gone off to a healing spring."

"Why would they-"

"Seems your husband had an unfortunate run-in with a bit of dreamshade," I told her.

"WHAT?" Snow exclaimed. "How – when? And now, what-?"

"Told you, healing spring. Hook knows the way, they'll be fine. We continue the path we planned."

"Why are you-?"

"Seriously?" I snapped at Emma. "Do you know the way? 'Cause if you do, please, go ahead. But don't complain when we fail."

She stared at me with wide eyes and I huffed.

"Some Saviour you are..."

"You made your point, dearie."

I turned to look at Rumple. Our eyes met and I nodded slightly. "I need you to pack up and get ready to leave," I said, my gaze never once parting from him.

"We'll be on our way in ten."

* * *

"You have to be a little nice," Rumpelstiltskin suggested as he caught up with me. I had started to get a little ahead of the group to keep an eye out for possible traps.

"Pot, meet kettle."

"You know, I've been trying to change."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Change? Into what?"

"A better man. The man I was before-"

"That man is gone," I said. "And for the better. That man was the kind of man who would rather run than fight. A man that pined after a woman that would never love him. A man that would let his own son get away. You're not that man anymore."

"But I was good," he said quietly. "She would want me to be good."

I rolled my eyes at him. "There you go. Maybe you _are_ that man again."

He frowned at me. "You don't know me half as well as you think."

"I know you well enough," I said. "You're right, of course. I could be a little nicer. But she just bugs me."

"She's a piece of work, Miss Swan."

"Piece of work, that's what you call it?" I muttered grumpily.

I stopped shortly to see the group trailing after us walking around the last corner we had rounded.

"I mean I get she wants to save the boy. But why play the leader? She's no match for Neverland."

"Miss Swan has extraordinary magical powers," Rumple mused. "A child of true love, you see? If she just believed-"

"But she doesn't," I interrupted sharply. "Never going to be a powerful sorceress. You could go ahead and teach her, of course. Then again, you have that thing with your apprentices. Oh yes," I added to his incredulous expression. "I did go there."

"You're in a mood," he deadpanned. "I don't know why."

"I don't know... I just... it's Neverland, it's all this... our whole plan, it's just crazy."

He frowned at me. "We'll be fine, dearie."

I gave him a slight smile. We turned the next corner and I froze on my spot.

"Well, if it isn't my favourite group of heroes."

"Pan," I said cautiously. "You, out and about."

"You know me, me and my boys are just playing around."

I narrowed my eyes at him just as the rest of the group turned the corner. At once, every weapon they had was drawn, but Pan merely smirked.

"Baelfire," he acknowledged. "I had figured they had freed you."

"You backstabbing-"

"Please," I interrupted Baelfire at once. "Let's be civil. Anything we can do for you, _Peter_?"

He raised an eyebrow at me. "I was just hanging out at the cliff, you know... happened to run into a charming young man and a one-handed pirate."

I straightened up slightly. "You did? Exchanged pleasantries and the like?"

"Amongst other things, yes," Pan said, grinning smugly.

I took a step towards him. "How about you just say what you have to say, love? Spare us all the time."

"Don't you know, I have all the time in the world," Pan said merrily, walking around me. I closed my eyes for a second and then turned to watch him. "It's really a fine assembly we have here. Snow White, of course, you really are the fairest of them all, aren't you?"

From his lips, even a compliment sounded like mockery and judging by Snow's expression, she felt it, too.

"Lovely Emma, yes, we talked already. The Evil Queen, not so evil now, are you? And finally, father and son, reunited again after such a long time... Where do you fit in, Morgaine? You're not part of this little family, are you?"

"What have you done to David?" Snow cut in.

"I – nothing. I might have suggested to your corsair friend to just end dear David's suffering."

"No," Emma breathed. "No, he wouldn't have."

Pan spread his arms, grinning broadly as he walked backwards with the confidence of someone who knew their territory better than anyone else.

"Don't let him get in your head," I said. "He's just playing games."

"Am I?" he asked. "Why, I guess you'll find out."

"Anything else you wanted, Pan?" I asked pointedly. "We must be on our way."

"Oh, yes, wouldn't dream of you holding you back," he said, smiling widely once more before vanishing into thin air. I exchanged a tense look with Rumple before resuming our path.

* * *

"How can we just continue on if David is possibly-"

I ignored Snow White's protests and luckily for me, Rumple stepped up to the task.

"Listen, Pan likes to play these games, we don't know for sure if anything has happened. Trying to track them down is just going to set us off path and it'll cost us time without any real chance of finding them. Take my advice, dearie. Have patience."

"If Hook killed him-"

"Then he won't be deader than he would have been with the dreamshade. I'm sure they'll meet us at the lake."

Several people huffed but I personally thought he was right. Pan tried to play with us, it was just what he did... maybe he really had met Hook and the prince. But I doubted that the pirate would really have killed David. What would have been the point to that?

The sun was already low as we reached the top of a hill from which one could see the lake that was our destiny for today.

"Almost there," I announced as they joined me on the hill top.

"Do you see them already?" Snow asked, starting forward to have a look.

"No, I don't. But I figured they would take longer than we have. No need to be concerned yet."

She nodded tensely and set off down the hill, directly followed by Emma and Baelfire.

"Do you really trust Hook?" Regina asked.

I shrugged and started to follow our hero-group. "Well, I sure trust him over Pan. He tried to get us off track, I refuse to let that happen."

* * *

We had put our shelter up close to the water. One by one, we started to get nervous. Snow White and Emma, of course, had been concerned for David from the beginning. I watched as Baelfire, too, started pacing. Regina was staring into the fire, but the way her fingers kept drumming on her thigh told me she grew anxious as well. Admittedly, as time progressed, I started to worry, too. They should not be so long. What if Hook really had-

I inwardly shook my head at myself and turned to look at Rumple, who sat close to the fire, carving.

"What are you doing?" I inquired.

"Carving."

"I see that. But why?"

"It's going to be an arrow. An enchanted arrow."

"What will it do?" Baelfire asked, stopping suddenly in his pacing.

"Let's just say the one who gets hit with it won't be a threat anymore."

"Maybe you understand why I'd rather you not have an enchanted arrow," Bae stated.

"I'm not going to kill Henry," Rumple bit out, viciously cutting at the branch. "Not with an arrow, not with anything."

"See, I have a hard time believing that-"

"Quiet!" Snow White snapped suddenly. "I think I heard-"

She was right. Now that everyone fell silent, there was the unmistakable sound of footsteps echoing through the forest.

I saw Rumple reaching for one of the completed arrows, just in case. As it turned out, it was not necessary. Out of the woods stumbled David and Hook, both looking worn out, but well.

Snow White gave a cry of relief and rushed forward into her husband's arms. Hook took a quick step to the side to not be run over before he moved to join us.

"You all right?" I asked.

"Fine."

"Have you met Pan at all?"

"Aye, we did," he muttered darkly. Hook walked over and sat down next to me. "Wanted me to kill David."

"Obviously, you didn't. I was right all along," I added to Emma and Snow White, who slowly joined us.

"You were only guessing."

"I'm good at it."

"You met Pan as well?" David inquired.

"Yes," Emma said. "He said he told Hook to kill you."

"And you believed I did?" Hook asked, clearly disappointed.

"Well..."

"Anyway, you didn't," I said. "You succeeded? He's healed?"

The two men nodded and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.


	11. Bring It On

**Thanks to everyone who read and fav'd and alerted. Only we _could_ work on that review thing, could we not?**

* * *

**Bring It On**

* * *

"_Can you teach me healing spells?" I asked as I handed him a cup of the tea I had just made._

"_What would you need that for?"  
_

_"Why would I not need that?" I raised a quizzical eyebrow at him. _

"_To heal yourself?"  
_

_"No," I said. "To heal someone else."  
_

_"What brought this on, huh? Do you have some sick lover or-?"  
_

_"What?" I exclaimed. "No. Look, why would I not want that? I could help people, what's wrong with that?"  
_

_Rumpelstiltskin took a sip from his cup. "And demand a price for it?"  
_

_I shook my head, exasperated. "No. Just... out of the goodness of my heart."  
_

_"Why would you do that?"_

"_You wouldn't?" I inquired, incredulous. I knew, of course, that Rumple, being the Dark One, was not exactly a good person. But I could not believe that he would refuse to help if someone really needed him. "Just imagine, there's someone dying. Needs your help."  
_

_"A deal can always be struck."  
_

_"No deal," I said. "Just help."  
_

_"Then I wouldn't."  
_

_Again, I shook my head. "I don't believe you."  
_

_"You can."  
_

_"If I was dying, right here – and I didn't have anything to trade. You would let me die?"_

_He narrowed his eyes at me. "Let's not be ridiculous, dearie. Do you want to learn?"_

* * *

Hook had picked up the leading of our expedition again. He had told me that he was sure we would reach our destination today. Considering the pace he had set up, I was inclined to believe him.  
From my place quite far down the group, I watched as Hook turned his head to talk to Emma, the lewd grin on his face suggesting some sort of innuendo. I saw Baelfire, walking behind her, shaking his head in disgust. At least this little love triangle provided sufficient entertainment for the rest of us.

"All this drama," I muttered to Rumple, who was walking behind me.

"Nothing but, ever since we found Bae..."

"I still can't believe how all that played out," I told him.

"Me too, believe me, dear."

I looked over my shoulder and offered him a comforting smile. Rumple grimaced instead and I turned my attention back to the path in front of me.  
Just in time, too. Rather abruptly, the trio had suddenly stopped. I bit my lip as to not curse loudly.

"What's going on?" Regina called from behind me.

"Shh!" Emma made.

We all fell silent. First, nothing but the natural sounds of the forest was to be heard. There was the soft rustling of leafs and the chirping of birds.  
Suddenly, though, there was a snapping sound, as if someone had stepped on and broken a branch. It was followed directly by the hissing noise of a hurried whisper.

"What-?" Snow White mouthed.

Hook sent her a dark look. "We're being followed."

* * *

_I smiled brightly as I sat down at the edge of the bed. Adriane was gently rocking her new born son in her arms. Her eyes were sparkling with joy as she looked up to me. "Isn't he beautiful?"  
_

_"As beautiful as he's been the whole week, love."_

_She rolled her eyes at me. "Am I not entitled to a little pride?"  
_

_"Oh, yes, you are," I assured her, still smiling._

"_I can't believe you're skipping your lessons to check on me."  
_

_I sighed. "I don't know... I feel there is so much more that would be useful, but he doesn't think so. We keep arguing about every little thing-"  
_

_"Maybe it's a sign," Adriane suggested._

_I scoffed. "Anything to get me away from him, right?"  
_

_"Don't be angry," she begged. "I just worry about you. The Dark One's not a good person."  
_

_"That's why he's called the Dark One, innit?"  
_

_She sent me an exasperated look, but I did not care. No one dared try to forbid me my lessons, but no one approved. It were the little comments, sneaked into every other conversation, that really bothered me. Rumple had warned me of this – 'don't think it's over with this' – and, as usual, he had been right. _

_The baby began to jammer softly and Adriane turned her attention back to him. She gently brushed his face and froze._

"_What?"  
_

_She looked up to me with wide, frightened eyes. "He's burning up."_

* * *

I kept picking half-heartedly at the bowl of mushrooms, berries and herbs we had collected along the way. I still had bit of bread and salt-meat in my bag, but I believed in saving for hard times. Taking a bit of our 'meal', though, made me wish I had not decided against my vittels.

"Why do you pull that face?" Rumple asked.

"Have you tasted this? This makes me wish I'd used my favour with you for food."

"That would be very foolish."

Demonstratively, I pushed a spoonful in my mouth. Rumple winced and I sent him a plagued smile. Very foolish, indeed. I would never waste my favour like that.

"We don't have anything better, so quit complaining," Regina stated, sitting next to me with an equally full bowl. "Why don't you enchant it to be something better, anyway?"

"Food? It's one of the things that cost immensely. You're not supposed to meddle with things like that."

"And you would let me do it?" Rumpelstiltskin grumbled.

"Well, I didn't. And honestly, how much darker can you get?"

He pulled a face. "I've been trying-"

Regina let out a biting laugh. "You? Dear, let's face it. We all know your dark heart and nothing is going to change."

He didn't answer, but I saw his gaze travelling over to where his son had sat down next to Emma.

I followed his gaze and found Hook sitting a few feet away. It appeared that Baelfire was winning this round.

The silence was suddenly interrupted by the frightened and outraged yell of two boys' voices. David and Hook leapt to their feet and I grinned at Rumple.

"We got them."

I got up and followed the two men a little bit into the woods, where we had set up the trap to catch our followers.

Two teenagers were hanging in the net we had set up, struggling wildly, but not managing to free themselves.

"Don't overexert yourself," I suggested merrily. "It's no use. Nets are enforced by magic."

"Anyone can do magic here!" one of the boys spat. "We just have to want-"

"Please, do try," I told him. "It'll only add to my amusement."

Hook had drawn his sword and was pointing it up at the boys. "Why are you following us?"

"We're not telling you anything!"

"You, boy," I interrupted. "What's your name?"

"Devon," he said defiantly. "Why?"

"Devon, love, just be reasonable. You're trapped. Maybe we'll let you out when you talk."

"You won't."

"You'll never know if you don't try."

Devon glared at me, but between looking at me and the tip of Hook's sword, he seemed to decide that he would rather talk.

"Pan sent us. He said the more we can take down the better-"

Almost growling, Hook extended his sword, poking the boy who gave a startled scream.

"Don't, Hook!" David exclaimed, drawing his hand back.

"And, why exactly did dear Peter want you to kill us?" I inquired further.

"He says magic is dying," Devon informed me. "He says you keep him from saving magic."

I groaned. "He and this story, really gets on my nerves."

"What, you believe the boy?" Hook said as I turned around to leave.

"That boy? He's a nobody; Pan wouldn't tell him the truth."

Hook and David pulled a face, but they both seemed to agree. They set off towards the camp again, while I turned to the boys wants more.

"Oh, and Devon. You were right. I won't let you out."

* * *

"_The herbs aren't working," I informed Igraine who was looking just as worn out and worried as I felt. "There's nothing I can do... I have searched every scroll, every book... I have tried it all. I'm done."  
_

_Igraine sighed heavily and looked into the room, where Adriane was weeping silently, rocking her son in her arms. "Sometimes, we just have to let go."  
_

_"Of a baby?" I asked, incredulous. "I can't accept that."_

_Adriane had placed the child in his cradle and joined us, sobbing violently. "Morgaine... please, please... you have to save him."  
_

_"Adriane..."  
_

_"Please, you are most powerful magician there is. You have to-"  
_

_"Adriane," Igraine said reasonably. "Even the Lady isn't all powerful."  
_

_"Most powerful magician," I repeated slowly. "But I'm not the most powerful."  
_

_"Morgaine, no," Igraine said sternly. "We're not going to the Dark One with this."  
_

_"But he could help!" I said. "He's got a fairy's wand, it can heal anything!"  
_

_Adriane's face was glowing with hope. "Really?"  
_

_"He would demand a price!" Igraine snarled. "You could never pay it, Adriane."  
_

_The girl's face fell. "He wouldn't take my boy, would he?"  
_

_"No," I assured her. "No. Whatever price he demands, _I'm_ going to pay. He's going to strike the deal with me, not you. We can save your boy. I promise."_

* * *

"Now that we've got rid of this obstacle," I announced. "I suggest we move on."

Everyone mumbled in agreement, even Emma and her parents who usually always found a reason to object to me.

"What do we do with the boys, though?" Regina asked.

"I thought we just leave them hanging."

Hook nodded grimly. "Otherwise, they'll just keep following us. I'm not keen on another encounter."

"Pan ordered them to kill us," David explained. "They'll keep it up."

"We can't just leave them there!" Snow White exclaimed, looking incredulously at her husband. "They'll die."

"So?" I said lazily.

"They're just kids! We can't kill kids."

"They've been kids for a long time, princess," I told her. "Older than you, probably."

"Still," she whispered. "We can't do this."

"I'll deal with them."

I turned my head to look at Rumple. "What's your plan?"

"Make sure they don't follow. And make sure they won't tell."

I nodded at him. "Fine. You do that. We go on."

* * *

"_You here, dearie? Whatever do you – you've brought. A sick child. In my castle."  
_

_"Yes, I know," I said quickly. "A very sick child. I need your help."  
_

_"Your child?" he said, pointing at Adriane. "You want me to heal it?"  
_

_Adriane opened her mouth to answer, but I intervened quickly. _

"_No. _I_ want you to heal it."  
_

_Our eyes met and I knew he understood the meaning of my words. He cocked his head to the side. "And here I was thinking you could do this yourself."  
_

_I shook my head frantically. "I've tried everything – but I thought, you have that wand, it'll help. Please."_

_He took in both me and Adriane, then nodded. "C'mon..."  
_

_Rumpelstiltskin waved for us to follow him deeper into his castle. Adriane, clutching her child tightly to her chest, sent me a worried glance and I gave her a reassuring smile. He led us into the main room, striding towards the back wall, where he had placed the fairy's wand.  
__Adriane seemed to shrink even more as she walked into the broad room and took in the closed curtains, the various magical items spread around the place and the spinning wall in the far corner._

"_Bring him here."  
_

_"I never told you it was a boy," she said cautiously._

_He rolled his eyes as I pushed her forward._

"_You want him healthy, right?"  
_

_"Can't you do it?" she begged quietly._

"_Now, now, dearie," Rumple scolded. "You want my help, you need to trust me with it."  
_

_"I promised you, remember?" I told her. "I promised you it's going to be all right. I keep my promises."  
_

_She nodded carefully and held the child out to him. Slowly, deliberately, he guided the wand over the baby, back and forth twice. Before our very eyes, the boy slowly gained colour again. I breathed a deep sigh of relief at the sight. What no herb or healing spell could do, the pure magic of a fairy could achieve. Adriane was very close to tears once more as she hugged her child to her closely. _

"_Thank you," she whispered. _

_Rumple waved her off and walked over to his wheel. I followed him to see him playing idly with a bit of straw._

"_You're a life-safer," I told him._

"_Literally."  
_

_I nodded, smiling. "What do I owe you?"  
_

_His eyes flickered to Adriane and her child and then back to me. "This one's on me."  
_

_For a second I stared at him, speechless, then I broke into a wide grin. "Careful, love. I might actually think you care."  
__He huffed and I quickly started forwards to hug him. He froze as I embraced him and I drew back to smile at him. "Thank you, Rumpelstiltskin."_


End file.
